News
Kindness and Mental Health: The Lifeline We All Need
We live in a fast-paced world that constantly demands results. Whether it’s paying the bills, providing for our children, caring for aging parents, or meeting the expectations of friends, family, or society — we are all required to show up. But amid all that showing up, how often do we show up for ourselves? How often do we pause to truly breathe — to rest, reflect, and tend to our own well-being?
Supporting Supervisors and Mid-Level Leaders in Behavioral Health Organizations
More than five years after the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the nation, the behavioral health field continues to undergo profound and lasting shifts. Early in the pandemic, the World Health Organization (2022) reported a global 25 percent increase in anxiety and depressive disorders, a surge that did not fade with time, as subsequent analyses continued to document widespread mental health burden (Kupcová et al., 2023; Kola et al., 2022). Instead, demand for behavioral health services has grown steadily, and clinicians now encounter increasingly complex and layered presentations requiring longer, more intensive episodes of care and thoughtful intervention (APA, 2022; SAMHSA, 2023; Savaglio et al., 2023).
Social Media and Artificial Intelligence as Tools for Therapy
Gen Z is “online and overwhelmed,” according to Esther Fernandez of the Made of Millions Foundation. It’s a fair statement, considering the unlimited access to digital content vying for a user’s attention aided by AI algorithms that responsively shape the virtual world around them. Gen Z is the largest population alive today and consists of those born in the late 1990s to the early 2010s. This generation is the first to be born and raised with access to the internet and digital technology, which makes them the current focus of corporations, news and media outlets, and researchers. According to The Anxious Generation book, the “phone-based childhood” has contributed to a sharp increase in depression, anxiety, self-harm and suicide among youth since 2010. Individuals have access to a constant stream of content that can trigger depression or fear from their back pocket, and the algorithms will feed the user more content related to their engagement. This could send those already struggling with their mental health into a spiral of content that exacerbates symptoms. For better or worse, our clients are engaging with content online, and young people are more likely to turn to the internet for answers to their mental health problems.
Cultivating a Trauma-Informed Behavioral Health Workforce
As a mother with a full-time career as a program administrator at a community mental health center, I know firsthand the challenges that often come with balancing motherhood and work. I remember the anxiety of returning to the office when my baby was just 2 months old. I still felt like I did not know what to expect and was still waiting for my life to go back to “normal”. However, I quickly discovered that when I became a mother, I joined a new community; a community of women that support each other. While the adjustment back to work took time, having the support from my colleagues and other mothers made a difference.